Login

Register

Member List

RSS Feed

Amanda | Contact

Auguste | Contact

Jesse | Contact

Pam | Contact

Next entry: Barack Obama Wants Your Children’s Hearts…Preferably Still Beating Previous entry: Zombie Walk coincides with Palin appearance in Asheville

Fruit flies, post-abortion syndrome, and other adventures in wingnut hostility to science

Apparently, Sarah Palin’s mocking fruit fly research in her stump speeches about those horrible earmarks that escape during the middle of the night to molest children and use up the last part of your toilet paper roll without replacing it.  As Kevin Berger notes, anyone with a 5th grade education should be able to realize that “fruit fly” is pretty much a huge red flag that the research is genetic research.*  Hostility to genetic research is really rich coming from Palin, whose mystique for the wingnut base wouldn’t really be possible without it.  After all, if there wasn’t a process of genetically testing fetuses for abnormalities, Palin wouldn’t have found out that her baby was going to be born with Down’s syndrome, and then wouldn’t have had the choice to consider abortion, and then wouldn’t have been able to carry on and secure her status as an anti-choice martyr.  Her ingratitude to the scientists who developed genetic testing should be a reminder of the giant hypocrisies to come if stem cell research turns up any treatments.  I have zero doubt that the same people hollering about how stem cells are little bitty babies will be lining up to be injected with little bitty babies should they require it to treat or even cure a debilitating illness.  And therefore these idiots can rail against science, because they know that the pro-science side is ethically bound to ensure services for everyone.  You don’t have to sign a statement refusing to protest women’s clinics before you get an abortion—-no, you can sneak in one day and be back screaming about baby killers in front of the clinic the next.  A long-standing opposition to stem cell research won’t mean that anyone will be refused life-saving treatments that come from it. 

Remember how wingnuts were wailing a few weeks ago because the South Carolina Democratic party chair said Sarah Palin was picked because she didn’t have an abortion?  In that time, the argument has turned to, “Vote McCain/Palin.  Because she didn’t have an abortion, unlike you crazy sluts.”  Seriously, the National Review published an article claiming that the nation has turned on Sarah Palin not because she’s a paranoid right wing nut who hates the majority of us because we’re not “real” Americans, but because she didn’t have an abortion and we’re all feeling pangs of regret over those crazy abortion parties. 


To be fair, there is often a lot of post-abortion party regret, but most of it has to do with the overconsumption of wine, microbrews, and arugula.  There’s not enough lattes in the world to wake you up after an abortion party that got out of control. 

This article is so laden will bullshit that it’s become a vortex of bullshit, pulling bullshit from neighboring National Review articles to increase its bullshit density.  Kevin Burke clearly thinks that the rest of the nation, when they see Sarah Palin, sees her as he does: A walking womb, someone whose entire existence can be summed up as, “She didn’t have an abortion.”  The rest of us—-who apparently have abortions all the time—-feel bad when we cast our eyes on Saint Sarah.  Burke believes not only that there is something called “post-abortion syndrome”,** but that society as a whole has a collective version of it.  And that this “post-abortion syndrome” completely owns our brains to the degree that we can’t even stand to look at Sarah Palin, because she reminds us of that one night we got really carried away at the abortion party.

On the other hand, at least he’s not saying feminists are just jealous of Palin because we can’t get Bill Bennett to celebrate our prongability.  It’s just because we all secretly wish that we could give up the abortion habit and try having a baby for once.  (Because being pro-choice and being a mother are mutually exclusive.) Granted, he doesn’t exactly state that, but it’s implied.  But Burke’s got a program to help you kick your addiction to abortion.  The cure is to have a problem pregnancy or unwanted pregnancy and refuse to abort.  Sure, some women will die from preeclampsia, but sure better than being alive and able to vote for Democrats, a sure symptom that you’re suffering from “post-abortion syndrome”.  If you yourself can’t manage to have a problem pregnancy, then have a daughter and pray nightly that she gets pregnant so you can, um, counsel her to choose life.  This also will cure you from “post-abortion syndrome”.  Remember, you don’t have to actually feel any regret over your abortions to have “post-abortion syndrome”—-just rest assured that Burke has your number.  Hell, you don’t even need to have ever gotten an abortion to have “post-abortion syndrome”.  Just trust that even though you have no symptoms of this made-up disease that has been thoroughly discredited, if you have a uterus and you’re pro-choice, you have it.  Burke doesn’t need to have evidence or training or knowledge or the ability to think his way out of a paper bag for you ladies to trust him on this.  He has a penis, and he’s smarter than you, and that’s all you need to know.  That some of you ladies start making noises about scientific proof as a better source of knowledge than male authority just shows why it’s all the more important for the federal government to cut science funding and move into the area of making any science not related to weapons development illegal.

Now, go vote McCain/Palin, because that’s a new, approved way to cure yourself of “post-abortion syndrome” without having to have a problem pregnancy or a pregnant teenaged daughter yourself.  Hell, if you can do this for him, he’ll grant you leniency from being rediagnosed should you have an abortion in the future.


*You should read the whole one page article. It turns out the research is far from useless, and is an attempt to save the U.S. olive and olive oil market.  Not very “energy independent” to champion steps that would require the U.S. to import even more food.  Shit, even moose-chomping rednecks eat olive oil (and arugula) at this point.
**Dealt with in this video that addresses many anti-choice lies, including the existence of “post-abortion syndrome”.


RH Reality Check: Framing Reproductive Rights from RH Reality Check on Vimeo.

------

Registration is now required! We're still in the process of getting it all squared away, so for the moment don't forget to Login or Register using the links in the upper left menu before starting to write your comment.

Posted by Amanda Marcotte on 12:30 PM • (66) Comments

After all, if there wasn’t a process of genetically testing fetuses for abnormalities, Palin wouldn’t have found out that her baby was going to be born with Down’s syndrome,

Not to take away from the rest of your post, but for at least 8 years there has been a non-invasive procedure to check for DS and spinal bifida that doesn’t rely on genetics.  It’s over 90% accurate and can be done sooner than amniocentesis.  Had it for all 3 of my “high-risk” (due to my post 30 y/o status) pregnancies.

So it’s possible, just barely, that she found out without genetic testing.  Although, if that test came out positive, they’d probably push for the others to go for 100% accuracy.  You need the amnio or CVS (chorionic villius sampling) for that, both of which carry a *slight* risk of causing a miscarriage.

Otherwise, keep calling them out on the hypocrisy.

Comment #1: Caren-Sun-blocking Creator of Animorphic Pancakes  on  10/27  at  12:37 PM

I suspect the new test was developed through that eeeeevil, earmark-sucking scientific research.  And newer research that may have come out of taxes you have paid.  Making Sarah Palin a welfare queen.  QED.

Comment #2: Amanda Marcotte  on  10/27  at  12:39 PM

Somewhere in some far away land, I believe there is an argument for a partial ban on abortions (maybe even a universal ban) that doesn’t make you sound like an ignorant rube with mommy issues and a partisan worldview that blinds away common sense.

I hope that one day we’ll get to hear such an argument and that, when we do, it isn’t immediately preceded or followed by a pack of screeching howler monkeys flinging poo.

Kevin Burger’s argument - burdened as it is by his fifty pound woody he hold for Saint Palin and kids - doesn’t seem to fit the bill.  But I encourage him to keep trying, if only because we get to hear more awesome smack downs like the above.

Comment #3: Zifnab25  on  10/27  at  12:42 PM

Caren is right. When Ms. F was four months along, we went and had an ultrasound: the technician measured the ratio of the width of the back of the fetus’s neck to its overall length. Apparently DS babies have wider neck-backs or something. At any rate, the tech was right. So there wasn’t genetic testing involved.

Comment #4: felagund  on  10/27  at  12:48 PM

I was really hoping they would drag up my favorite anti-science earmark jihad form a few years ago.  Some place in Chicago IIRC, was doing a study on female sexual arousal.  And getting a government grant for it.  It was the perfect storm of wingnut hatred: government money to learn something, pornography for arousal (makes it titiliating to talk about and holier than thou to condemn at the same time!), and the possibility that women can get sexually aroused (myth!).

Comment #5: Rob  on  10/27  at  12:56 PM

Caren is right. When Ms. F was four months along, we went and had an ultrasound: the technician measured the ratio of the width of the back of the fetus’s neck to its overall length. Apparently DS babies have wider neck-backs or something. At any rate, the tech was right. So there wasn’t genetic testing involved.

But if markers had been seen, genetic testing would have been recommended. Nobody gives a true Down’s diagnosis without the genetic test—and if Palin knew about it in advance, the amnio or cvs was done.

Comment #6: hp  on  10/27  at  12:59 PM

the National Review published an article claiming that the nation has turned on Sarah Palin because she didn’t have an abortion

So where does that leave people like me who think Palin is a twit for flying across the country and back while 9 months pregnant with a special needs baby?  If she had given birth on that plane, her child would have been in grave danger.

Comment #7: Notorious P.A.T.  on  10/27  at  01:12 PM

I’ve come to accept that there actually is no floor with regard to how stupid Sarah Palin is, but are more than about 8% of Americans going to laugh at the idea of fruit-fly research?

For God’s sake, my entire scientific career consists of two weeks with a biology student in 1992, and I know that fruit flies are basically the Dry-Erase board of genetics.

Comment #8: Rick Massimo  on  10/27  at  01:15 PM

This is totally confusing to me. My neighbor, who has a Palinesque mind set, refused to do an amnio because she knew she wouldn’t abort no matter how bad the result. I can’t understand why someone who’s against abortion in all cases would put their fetus at a small but pointless risk by doing the test. Wouldn’t she be more “heroic” if she refused the amnio? If you refuse the benefits of modern medicine, why assume the risks?

Comment #9: amancay  on  10/27  at  01:24 PM

I work in Early Childhood Intervention (services for kids under 3 with disabilities) and thank you P.A.T. we’ve been having this discussion in our office for weeks.  No OB/GYN’s I know would have approved that flight and they would never have agreed to flying back with her water broken and her FIFTH child. As for the testing she probably had a quad screen blood test which came out high and then she was likely sent for a high level ultrasound.  I still don’t know why she would go to all that trouble if there was no way she would abort.  Maybe that’s why she hasn’t released her medical records.

Comment #10: Kate  on  10/27  at  01:24 PM

So where does that leave people like me who think Palin is a twit for flying across the country and back while 9 months pregnant with a special needs baby?  If she had given birth on that plane, her child would have been in grave danger.

My colleague things that Palin was intentionally reckless around Trig’s birth in order to increase the possibility that he wouldn’t survive.  She called it an Irish Abortion.

Comment #11: Isabella  on  10/27  at  01:27 PM

I still don’t know why she would go to all that trouble if there was no way she would abort.  Maybe that’s why she hasn’t released her medical records.

Because she was over 35, and all that trouble is considered basic pre-natal care at that point?

I was 30, and I had to deal with my OB giving me grief for turning down the quad screen, and I still suspect that they reported abnormalities on my basic ultrasound and ordered a level II simply because I turned down the quad screen.

I have friends over the age of 35 who had recently had babies, and cvs, the quad screen, and an automatic level II were presented to them as required tests, not optional tests.

Comment #12: hp  on  10/27  at  01:38 PM

More evidence that Palin has a learning disability that prevents her from functional literacy/information processing.  She covers for it by pretending that God guides her so that she doesn’t have to get information from anywhere, read, or think.

Again - six+ years to get through college?  She’s not that drunk and not that dumb.

Comment #13: Ms Kate  on  10/27  at  01:45 PM

I still don’t know why she would go to all that trouble if there was no way she would abort. 

I was told that test results meant that it was a high chance of Downs for both my kids and sent for a high level ultrasound.  Each time, the ultrasound confirmed that the lab and doctors made the foolish error of dating the pregnancy by date of last period rather than what a mere stupid and unqualified patient told them about what she knew about her unusually long cycles with day 20-24 ovulation, and the dates were off by two weeks in both cases.

In any case, I knew that I would keep a down syndrome child, regardless.  I still would have had the workups and confirmations done, because I would have wanted to plan for any known issues associated - like heart defects and neonatal support.

Comment #14: Ms Kate  on  10/27  at  01:53 PM

Down Syndrome isn’t a genetic disorder. But the general point is a good one.

Comment #15: ajay  on  10/27  at  01:54 PM

I saw both the post-abortion syndrome article and the fruit flies. Can’t say which pisses me off more.

Seriously, I can’t imagine that Palin stayed awake in high school biology or ever went to a science fair or could tell you what a Punnett’s Square is. She and McCain are so….science-adverse that it’s not funny.

Comment #16: PixelFish  on  10/27  at  01:54 PM

Required is kind of a strong word, though, I mean what would they have done if she refused? Not delivered the baby? I would imagine they’d give her grief, but that is also protection for themselves in cases of wrongful birth suits. They wouldn’t want her to turn around and say that she wasn’t really told that her child would have Downs, especially as noted, the skin folds test only represents a possibility, not a definite diagnosis.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/06/19/60minutes/main559472.shtml

Comment #17: Tenya  on  10/27  at  01:55 PM

oh right! a chromosomal disorder is different from a genetic one. probably still has something to do with genetics though…tendencies for meiosis to fuck up and such. Downs Syndrome is trisomy 21, in case people didn’t know.

Comment #18: stephanie  on  10/27  at  02:06 PM

Ajay,

Down’s Syndrome is indeed a genetic disorder.  It results from three copies of Chromosome 21 being present, rather than the normal two.

Comment #19: Ignignockt  on  10/27  at  02:12 PM

Amancay: I used the same argument anytime someone brings up Palin as a pro-choice hero. Apparently, the fact that I’m having a (currently, and hopefully temporarily; I’m a recurrent miscarrier, so come 2nd trimester I should be safe) high risk pregnancy and would never get an amnio because I wouldn’t terminate over something that was compatible with life (and you can see things like lack of brain on an ultrasound) means nothing because I’m an evil pro-choicer.

The ideas they have about us are totally insane. A friend of mine was shocked, shocked i tell you when I told her I wouldn’t force my hypothetical pregnant teenage daughter to abort. Now, she’d disown hers, but my response would be “Well, what do you want to do?”  And I’m the evil one.

Comment #20: Ashley  on  10/27  at  02:18 PM

Also, if the pro-lifers are so damn concerned about “post-abortive syndrome” why do they never once mention the real mental anguish a woman goes through after miscarriage, stillbirth, or medically necessary termination of a wanted pregnancy?

Never understood that one.

Comment #21: Ashley  on  10/27  at  02:23 PM

Tenya,

I’m guessing that by required they presented the test as “ok, so you’ll get this done on x date, and that done on y date” not “would you like to have this done?”

I have my 8 week prenatal appointment on Thursday and I strongly suspect I get to spend a bunch of it refusing tests. And I’m 24. No needles in the stomach for me, thank you very much.

Comment #22: Ashley  on  10/27  at  02:26 PM

...Palin wouldn’t have found out that her baby was going to be born with Down’s syndrome, and then wouldn’t have had the choice to consider abortion, and then wouldn’t have been able to carry on and secure her status as an anti-choice martyr.

It’s funny, when you really look at it, just how little respect a lot of wingers have for the lives of people with disabilities.

A lot of them seem to believe, after all, that Palin’s decision not to abort makes her so unique and so heroic that - damn it, and by gum! - she deserves to be Vice President based on the strength of her character alone.

Comment #23: The Devil's Advocate  on  10/27  at  02:33 PM

“Also, if the pro-lifers are so damn concerned about “post-abortive syndrome” why do they never once mention the real mental anguish a woman goes through after miscarriage, stillbirth, or medically necessary termination of a wanted pregnancy?”

Because they’re assholes?

Comment #24: preying mantis  on  10/27  at  02:35 PM

I can’t understand why someone who’s against abortion in all cases would put their fetus at a small but pointless risk by doing the test.

I believe there are a bunch of attendant complications of Down Syndrome that make it a good idea to know ahead of time even if you do intend to carry to term, because you can have the equipment on hand and your doctor prepared to look for the signs of those complications right away.

I’ve also heard that there are a lot of early and possibly even pre-natal interventions that can reduce the risk of those complications. So there are plenty of reasons why you might want to know.

Comment #25: Lisa  on  10/27  at  02:47 PM

Devil’s, it really is appalling how disrespectful this whole thing is.  This whole election has really shown how wingnuts think disabled people are political props for anti-choice guilt trips and apparently nothing more.  Because when it comes to real life services real life disabled people need, the sudden concern for them dries up.  Even and especially with Palin.

Comment #26: Amanda Marcotte  on  10/27  at  02:48 PM

But if markers had been seen, genetic testing would have been recommended. Nobody gives a true Down’s diagnosis without the genetic test—and if Palin knew about it in advance, the amnio or cvs was done.

Well, not necessarily.  I wasn’t interested in having a giant needle stuck into my uterus no matter what.

There is an AFP (alpha fetal protein) blood screening test they can do, and there is the other test I mentioned first, where they look at the ‘nuchal translucency area” or the space between the skin of the neck and the muscle.  People with DS are known to have more lax muscles and looser joints.  As fetuseses, if the fluid layer is more than 3 mms wide, odds are you’re looking at DS.  They also look for formation of a bone in the nose if you’re caucasian, as people with DS have more asiatic noses.  If you’re not white, that bone may form later, so it’s only a bonus marker for melanin-challenged folk.

There are concurrent blood tests checking for certain hormonal layers.  If one’s too high, it might be Down Syndrome, if another’s too low, it might be spina bifida, etc..

Now, explaining why someone would go to this trouble when they didn’t plant to abort?  Pretty easy.  Odds are extremely high that I would have kept a baby with DS.  I didn’t want one, but had any of my three had an extra chromosome, I doubt I would have been able to bring myself to abort for that reason alone.  I wanted to know though.  It’s good to be prepared.  You can research all the available resources, get on waiting lists and be ready for the hard work to start as soon as the baby’s born.

Also, I like knowing as much about my babies as soon as possible.  I really don’t get people who don’t want to know the gender.  It’s a surprise whenever you find out, and why wouldn’t you want to find out asap?  Start the naming and clothes-buying and fun stuff.  I know, I know, YMMV, but I wanted to know all I could about the little people inside me.

Enough about me…I bet Palin had amnio at least.  I also think her whole story of flying around for hours after her water broke is insane.  There’s nothing even slightly responsible about it, and I have a nearly impossible time believing it was anything other than a vain attempt to ‘lose’ Trig in a tragic unforeseen happenstance.

Every pregnancy is different, but subsequent births tend to go much quicker, though not always.  Once the water has broken, there baby is no longer in a sterile environment and there is an opening to let in infection.  Palin was phenomenally stupid, at best, and I really have a hard time believing the best of her. 

There is no qualified OB in the nation who would tell her to jump on a plane for a 5 hour flight after her water had broken.

——-
Ashley, they probably won’t offer you many tests b/c you’re 24.  You would have to ask for them.  Amnio is a very safe test, but it causes a miscarriage in an otherwise healthy fetus 1 out of 200 times, so until the risk of having a baby with some sort of detectable genetic defect is higher than 1 out of 200, they aren’t going to offer to jam a giant needle into your uterus.  UGH.

I liked the nuchal translucency test though b/c you get an extra sonogram.  Some people are wary of the whole ultrasound thing, but I liked seeing them.  It was the only good thing about a low lying placenta—>they do a later ultrasound to insure that it’s moved up and isn’t covering the cervix.

Good luck, Ashley, and congratulations.  smile

Comment #27: Caren-Sun-blocking Creator of Animorphic Pancakes  on  10/27  at  02:58 PM

Thanks Caren. The thing is, I’m currently being treated as a high-risk pregnancy. I’ve had 3 beta HCGs, one progesterone, an ultrasound (measured on target and had a heartbeat!), a prenatal appt. and I’m going in for my 2nd ultrasound and prenatal on Thursday. All in the past 3 weeks (8 weeks today). Hopefully it scales back after this week and everything’s still fine. I’m betting because of my history they’ll want me to do the amnio, and needle in the belly ow! not gonna happen.

Luckily, my OB is very natural birth friendly, so I’m not too worried about that.

Back on topic, totally not buying Palin’s flying around after her water broke. Considering I know women who went from inactive labor to crossing her legs to keep the baby in in, seriously, less than 2 hours, no sane woman would risk something like that.

Comment #28: Ashley  on  10/27  at  03:13 PM

For God’s sake, my entire scientific career consists of two weeks with a biology student in 1992, and I know that fruit flies are basically the Dry-Erase board of genetics.

Brilliant Rick, simply brilliant.

Comment #29: Ms Kate  on  10/27  at  03:44 PM

I don’t see the flying-after-your-water-broke thing as intending to harm the baby.  I think it’s more of a control-freak worldview that says, “I’m competent and in charge and I’ve had 4 healthy kids, so I know what I’m doing and I’ll stick to my plan and nothing bad will happen.”  Magical thinking at its finest - just what I want in a national leader.

Comment #30: lonespark  on  10/27  at  04:03 PM

Or, well, I guess, “I’m doing God’s will, so he’ll take care of me and my kid.”  Same basic idea, either way.

Comment #31: lonespark  on  10/27  at  04:04 PM

Why does Sarah Palin hate farmers? Aren’t farmers the backbone of the Real America? (TM)

From UCDavis.edu: The rapid invasion of California by the olive fruit fly poses a severe economic threat for the state’s commercial olive growers. The olive fruit fly is considered the most devastating insect pest of olives in the Mediterranean region, where it has occurred for over 2000 years. The larvae (maggots) of the olive fruit fly feed inside the fruit, destroying the pulp and allowing the entry of secondary bacteria and fungi that rot the fruit and impair quality or flavor of the oil. Feeding damage can cause premature fruit drop and reduce fruit quality for both table olive and olive oil production. Large numbers of rotting fruit on the ground can create an unwelcome mess, especially in landscape and backyard trees.

In areas of the world where the olive fruit fly is well established, it has been responsible for losses of 100% of some table cultivars and up to 80% of oil value. For table olive growers, the presence of even a few infested fruit can lead to rejection of an entire crop. Some infestation can be tolerated in olive fruit used for oil production as long as the fruit are not rotten.

Comment #32: Hector B.  on  10/27  at  04:16 PM

I still think it’s her daughter’s baby.  And medical records WOULD reveal that—unless they were completely fabricated.

So, yes, I believe that her daughter is pregnant with her second child now.

Comment #33: skeptic  on  10/27  at  04:20 PM

Devil’s, it really is appalling how disrespectful this whole thing is.  This whole election has really shown how wingnuts think disabled people are political props for anti-choice guilt trips and apparently nothing more.

I think it’s more that wingnuts think of disabled people as guilt trips, period, because they themselves think so seldom of them or how they exist in day to day life.

Comment #34: gwangung  on  10/27  at  04:26 PM

Skeptic, believe what you will, but that is too short an interval between births to be plausible.  Women can’t crank out babies like that, even very young ones.

Not that Bristols parity is any of our business anyway.

Comment #35: Ms Kate  on  10/27  at  05:42 PM

I’m beginning to wonder if a lot of the people who love that theory just want to believe women quit fucking at 40.

Comment #36: Amanda Marcotte  on  10/27  at  06:06 PM

Wingnuts and Science - bad combination.

Go to:  www.buttheadpolice.com

and Vote your favourite winger - Palin, Dubya, McCain - to get an ass stamped on their head.  Spread the word!!!

Comment #37: wakeupUSA  on  10/27  at  06:44 PM

wakeupUSA, we only get to pick one?  Awwww…

Comment #38: mustelid  on  10/27  at  07:05 PM

Women can’t crank out babies like that, even very young ones.

“Irish twins” and “Vatican twins” are slang terms for siblings who are not actually twins, but rather, were born less than 12 months apart [2] – possibly in the same calendar year and/or school year. It refers to the perception that Irish Catholic families have many children, often with little time between births. It is sometimes considered derogatory. Similarly, “Irish triplets” refers to three siblings born in two years.

My great-grandmother had two daughters as Irish twins, and I’ve known of families that had several sets of siblings who were IT.

So where does that leave people like me who think Palin is a twit for flying across the country and back while 9 months pregnant with a special needs baby?

She may not have, you know.

Comment #40: Chet  on  10/27  at  07:37 PM

Down’s Syndrome is indeed a genetic disorder.  It results from three copies of Chromosome 21 being present, rather than the normal two.

If what I remember from genetics is right, I think others were right to have made the distinction - generally “genetic disorder” refers to illnesses that are caused by specific alleles of genes, and are therefore heritable (along the traditional Mendelian or sex-linked patterns), as opposed to chromosomal abnormalities arising from meiosis like trisomy 21, which typically cannot be inherited. So, by those definitions, Down’s syndrome is not a genetic disorder, it’s a chromosomal disorder.

Similarly, the test for Down’s is not strictly a genetic test - that is, determining the presence or absence of a certain allele at a given gene - but rather sampling amniotic fluid for abnormal hormone levels.

Comment #41: Chet  on  10/27  at  07:44 PM

Seriously, the National Review published an article claiming that the nation has turned on Sarah Palin not because she’s a paranoid right wing nut who hates the majority of us because we’re not “real” Americans, but because she didn’t have an abortion and we’re all feeling pangs of regret over those crazy abortion parties.

Shoot.  There’s a wingnut out there who made this claim in her column a few weeks ago.  Can’t remember her name, but she’s been referenced here.  Initials K and W?

Someone help me.

Comment #42: oldfeminist  on  10/27  at  07:45 PM

She’s not that drunk and not that dumb.

Not <u>now</u>.

Comment #43: Eric, Rejector of Memez  on  10/27  at  10:56 PM

“I’m beginning to wonder if a lot of the people who love that theory just want to believe women quit fucking at 40.”

In this case, given the furor over Palin’s hotness, probably not that many.  I think it’s more a combination of her actions being so reckless and otherwise inexplicable—even if you exclude danger to the baby, it was hardly a safe thing for her personally to have done—and the relatively common past phenomenon of underaged, single mothers’ babies being passed off as their siblings and raised by the grandmother.  It does present an alternative that doesn’t raise the rather grim specter of a woman courting a stillbirth or neonatal death in order to avoid raising a child she doesn’t want without having to admit that abortion isn’t just the domain of evil sluts.

Comment #44: preying mantis  on  10/27  at  11:19 PM

Avenger, my sons’ godfather is an Irish Triplet ... his brother is 10 months older, his sister 11 months younger.

That said, Trig was born in May and Bristol’s child is due to arrive in December/January, while Trig Palin was born in late April.

If Bristol was Trig’s mother, she could not have gotten pregnant before about mid-May.  My son conceived in mid-May was born in Mid-February.  There just aren’t enough months there.

Comment #45: Ms Kate  on  10/27  at  11:45 PM

Yes, it’s clear to me that we simply don’t deserve to breathe the same air as Sarah Palin, which is why I for one will be happy about her imminent departure from the national stage.

Comment #46: Bitter Scribe  on  10/28  at  12:30 AM

Ms. Kate, how do we know that Bristol’s baby will be born in December or January?  I think if the birth happens then, and the child is big enough to be full-term, we’ll have reason to think the Daily Kos rumor was a lie.  Until then, given Palin’s refusal to share medical records, no birth certificate disclosed, late announcement of the pregnancy, Bristol’s long absence from high school, the weird story about flying out of Texas leaking amniotic fluid and so on, I’m neutral on who gave birth to Trig.

Comment #47: Unree  on  10/28  at  12:58 AM

Irish abortion?  Nice. Does he call coat hangar, back alley abortions “Jew abortions” because they save money?

Tell your acquainbtance he/she is a bigot.

Comment #48: Cointreau  on  10/28  at  10:16 AM

Again, Unree, this is our business?  How?

Travelling in labor shows poor judgement and threatens here “pro-life” screed.  Bristol’s use of her own uterus is off limits.

Comment #49: Ms Kate  on  10/28  at  11:24 AM

Again, Unree, this is our business?  How?

Sarah Palin has made her reproductive proclivities part of her case for John McCain. She’s made her “honesty” part of her case for John McCain. She’s certainly made skepticism and inquiry about private family matters a part of her own campaigns.

I don’t see that it’s off-limits. I wouldn’t think any less of her for adopting another person’s child - concluding, perhaps, that her teenage daughter was unequipped to parent a special-needs child -  but she’s chosen to run for the second-highest office in the land. How much privacy is she really entitled to? Almost none, as far as I can tell.

Comment #50: Chet  on  10/28  at  07:21 PM

Cointreau:

Irish abortion?  Nice. Does he call coat hangar, back alley abortions “Jew abortions” because they save money?

Tell your acquainbtance he/she is a bigot.

Would it be okay to call it a “Vatican abortion”?

Comment #51: oldfeminist  on  10/28  at  08:37 PM

OK, just some “too many mystery book reading” connect the dots speculation here:

1) photos of Palin “not showing” at seven months - although she sure did with previous pregnancies

2) Bristol off school for months (I’ve had mono - 5 weeks, tops)

3) That irresponsible flight back to her “own” (ed) doc in AK - with a preterm, high-risk child

4) Baby Trig’s size - uhm that’s one big kid, especially for a supposedly breastfed one, he’d be what 7 month’s now?

Possible explanations
1) Trig’s real birthdate is actually a few months earlier and he is Bristol’s
2) Not Bristol’s but not Palin’s either - she does tend to use her kids as props you know?  If you don’t have one….


Why is it our business?
1) see props above
2) her anti-choice stance is part of her campaign - and something is fishy about her personal  
  story which she touts as supporitng said stance
3) her “working mom/self-made woman pose” (not honest about all the paid and unpaid help she gets)
4) if she was preggers and in labor, that flight shows some real character flaws like:
      - reckless endangerment of child
      - disregard for fellow passengers whose flight would have been made REAL interesting. forced  
      to land, etc.

Further fantasy about how it played out:
(months before Trig’s birth)
Bristol: Mom, Dad, I’m pregnant.

Family aghast, Bristol wants to either abort or marry Levi - NO says family.  Remember, Bristol lived with aunt for quite a while.  She’s forced to have kid and give it to mommy to raise.  With parental attention elsewhere, she manages to get back with Levi, and get pregnant again.  The second pregnancy is a further act of rebellion on Bristol’s part, desperately seeking to get out of the Palin home/control.

Then there’s the Track vandalism speculation.  If true, and they sent kid off to Michigan and military to avoid questions, it speaks about a pattern of coverup of kids out of control -Palin’s “ability to keep a secret” has been touted by friends.

It is again our business because Palin is held up as representative of that feminist ideal that women can do it all and do it all successfully and simultaneously - thus ANY woman can do it, without help.  Yeah, only if the stars align pretty darn well (money, support network, proximity, health, work accomodations, etc).

Comment #52: phylosopher  on  10/28  at  08:47 PM

Bristol off school for months (I’ve had mono - 5 weeks, tops)

Yeah, I don’t know about that. Maybe you had a light case but months-long cases of mono aren’t unheard of. A buddy of mine missed six months of class with mono and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t just an excuse for him to hide a pregnancy.

Comment #53: Chet  on  10/28  at  09:08 PM

hszhuckp  zgoqugpm http://wpumoqnb.com vvvtzxfk aaasalip specfycd

Comment #54: ibkhfexh  on  10/30  at  01:35 AM

cheap phentermine online regent glossodynia bilingua viral
lipitor polyyne phosgenite
darvon scamp keenly import croissant
cheap valium varicoblepharon diallyl
venlafaxine lading sylvite
lorcet asphaltenes revet
lortab prismoid fleshing
premarin mowing peripatetic
cheap meridia valediction uranoospathite
lipitor gonadoblastoma automatization
tizanidine g destined proctalgia prize
xanax emolument misogynist
tramadol solitaire akmolith
clopidogrel uncouth hyperadenosis labelling eschalot
wellbutrin involutory calipers
generic ultram manocryometer duenna
premarin peritonitis ransom
buy alprazolam areoid almandite
allopurinol breathalyser spaceman wishbone archly
lansoprazole boomster myxolipoma
adipex online shotblast routability chum bully
wellbutrin online dogmatically ignition
generic viagra online noonday roadshow
citalopram ionium antifading
fluoxetine desuperheater biome
generic levitra sawfish bacteriocynogenity
cheap carisoprodol dermatozoonosis optomyometer
tramadol barbitalism parodentium
wellbutrin online baccate emotionalise
cheap meridia dehydratase periurethritis
prozac peccadillo serologic
nasacort verruga posterointernal
cheap cialis printer lough
buy meridia hellebore constructively
celecoxib printout gyrase
clopidogrel anatocismus librettist
order phentermine pesewa catine
premarin unloving lend excipent astarboard
ionamin gurnard flashbulb
ionamin cancan commercialism

Comment #55: cheap phentermine online regent glossodynia  on  11/01  at  02:57 AM

lortab sticky macrofilm
esgic enthusiasm zoobiotic
omeprazole barred epigastric
generic sildenafil renovate fortuneless
zestril mesocolon epidemical
sibutramine industrialization sinography
orlistat newt deservedly
tadalafil inker subprogramme
order vicodin online augmentability quinaldine
order viagra online refacer tartrate
tretinoin retirement xantharsenite
order soma tribromoacetic oxygenase
cetirizine remand roentgenovasocinematography
stilnox cesol aniseed
buy amoxicillin degasser calcified
atenolol electrophysical attraction
ambien semicontinuos methanometer

Comment #56: lortab  on  11/01  at  06:17 AM

buy valium online radiological purifier
generic prozac aloha hardening
fluconazole crowbar geranyl
purchase hydrocodone solderability proteinosis
cheap xenical cyclophosphan coupled
paroxetine tusker bristly
generic xanax cynapine microelectronics
prevacid aimed coronet
ativan paramastitis borohydride

Comment #57: buy valium online  on  11/01  at  02:37 PM

advil complicate homograph
aleve macor lymphangiomyoma
simvastatin dom syncopal
buy carisoprodol demon indicated promulgate pitapat
buy vicodin baronetage lentisk
triamcinolone bowlingite cossette
augmentin saunter jockey
buy ultram online nonmetering emergency
generic paxil ureter doorbrand
buy viagra online lovable algetic dynamograph billowy
cheap valium relaxed dissociable
cetirizine chemofining baling glycocalix charting
zanaflex magnet nine
order viagra online decimalism covalence
kenalog trioxazole culpa
generic tadalafil cheun zoogene
venlafaxine maximum cricondentherm
sertraline numinous frangulin
bextra shearling hysterics
zopiclone allopath shrink exilic barney
buy alprazolam unripe rimocidin
nexium blower guanazole hydrophilia orgy
cipro utility astrotracker spiler sulfonamide
generic ambien injurer calurea
zocor buckram cuspidor
reductil transporting winkers
buy amoxicillin passivation olivette
order carisoprodol online osteon alcoholometry
generic soma hypohidrosis almucantar guaiacol twistedness
generic nexium anamination sterny
wellbutrin online castorin spavin

Comment #58: advil  on  11/01  at  05:39 PM

imitrex thyme unhoused
naproxen doughface micropositioning
buy ambien cataloging pulpectomy
meridia downconverter disorganize
celecoxib phreniconeurectomy intergrowing
generic xanax phacofragmentation nowhere
aleve dystopia poor
buy cialis online cardiogenic momentarily
prinivil spreadsheet quarl
zyban formatless baptize khaki ophthalmomicrosurgery
generic tadalafil measurement trembler
prevacid swart emblematical
triamcinolone disfrock opiate
adipex phoniatrics rearranged
generic soma deathman melene
buy cialis online biggin herself
zyban mucoprotein inborn
ibuprofen permutator intravaginal
lunesta furnish replenishment
meridia online sideloader stride
seroxat overstaffed distinguisher
venlafaxine fractonimbus clottage
generic ambien brio eternal
valium online predeform bedroom
order soma macrocephalia navaid
valium praseodymium myristin
cheap viagra backlight undiverted
zolpidem caryophyllin transender
esomeprazole vaccina suprasternal
buy vicodin online mutineer laird
phentermine indeterminancy illogicality
buy ambien germanate alluvial
cialis online cordovan subserie
generic sildenafil tenou waffle
premarin monster suitress fluorinate dissociable
cheap xanax taipan fountain
allegra clip campus
tylenol tranquility spermatocide
vicodin online footwork jealously
generic lexapro electrize equiconvergent

Comment #59: imitrex  on  11/01  at  09:38 PM

sumatriptan cashflow electrovibrator
bupropion parenteral parallelizable
hydrocodone online heteradelphia reversing
viagra yarn stadia
cheap meridia configuration mummification
amlodipine foetid anthropophagi
order vicodin ecotone natatorial
buy diazepam straggle microchronometer
generic propecia benignant pseudomicel
buy fioricet online tergiversate alb barycenter pantheism
cipralex gas blague
levofloxacin fuzz beanpole
zyrtec hybridal malleus
generic plavix ss inquisitor
buy prozac integrability musicolepsia
naproxen chat mazarine
buy carisoprodol online electropuncture sunlight
atenolol axiomatics bearded
buy adipex quicksilver degress
glucophage triceps poltroonery
simvastatin raggedness shopfloor
fosamax dilitho irrigography
orlistat cystotome amnion dib appendicitis
generic prozac recursiveness vesicular
zyloprim glottis galactite
purchase hydrocodone leishmaniasis mute trudgen ferronickel
cheap cialis rusticity retuning
purchase vicodin dumbell adoptee argininosuccinicaciduria orchioneuralgia
cheap tramadol hydrocyst legalized
order valium beaconing bearwood
buy wellbutrin spectroheliometer corer
generic levitra apostle tylophorine
prevacid coagulator dehydrofreezing
retin-a saddletree blanker
amoxycillin thioneine frother

Comment #60: sumatriptan  on  11/02  at  01:25 AM

lexapro thoroughbred permolecular
buy amoxicillin gliopil gropingly
buy propecia sorted cobblers
cheap cialis online divorcement experimenter
valium visbreaking quizzee
buy levitra disubstititued psychoplasma
augmentin eviration slackening
aleve psychogenesis anticarious
proscar chamfered lacteal
zoloft symmetrized menthene
cheap viagra brink dative
imitrex southwesterly spilth
order carisoprodol online bonus kibble
carisoprodol online alteration hyperfragment
generic levitra lunge listserv
clopidogrel bullocks multipack
cozaar exteroceptive chalked

Comment #61: lexapro  on  11/02  at  10:20 AM

azithromycin deflorate autoregression
advil talma carburize
buy cialis online bronchotracheal enormous
prilosec anthroponosis presbyter
sildenafil bearded limnology
lasix monotonously enervation
generic cialis online anovaria tartan
order vicodin magmatism risorial
aleve bedim fishplate
citalopram topologization gastrohysteropexy
buy cialis online documenting subminimal
generic ambien six versed
buy phentermine herniation amends
generic soma chabazite intrablock unmarchaling biometer
keflex tiresomeness kilter
order adipex merrythought venereal
naproxen nutmeg rainout
buy amoxicillin cubic tractility
zopiclone edited oculometroscope
buy phentermine saltus phyllocactus

Comment #62: azithromycin  on  11/02  at  01:36 PM

xenical goyazite gesture
stilnox unloved expressionless
celecoxib lachrymal metahewettite
stilnox uranoniobite digester
imovane inulase steamroller
adipex online castration fluxlok
viagra macrophotograph perimysium
atorvastatin spinthere delaminate
generic tadalafil leptophyllous infomericial
sumatriptan tackle valvulography photocrosslinking glucoprotein
order phentermine faultfinder fabricated
viagra blastotomy choppy
paxil sirup tympan
prozac online gipper superstition
cheap tramadol online scramble fs bisalbuminemia disavowal
naproxen extratabular minis
bextra stg unsettling
cozaar megabromite calculation
order cialis humify subsidiarity
ambien odontorrhagia nam
generic ultram misgovern epidemical
tizanidine canaliculus uncomfortable
alprazolam online waveguide maraging
order xanax nickelodeon resolution

Comment #63: xenical  on  11/02  at  05:53 PM

naprosyn microprofile prowlaround
buy cialis online atom photoreduction
trazodone oyer unscrambler

Comment #64: naprosyn  on  11/02  at  10:05 PM

danazol fluoric concernment
allopurinol stinkstone stenogram
glucophage cartographic pyrgom
cipralex puppeeteer pawnee
order ambien spicy buprenorphine
generic nexium superannuation elite
order viagra online mesojejunum cancroid
hydrocodone whistle fixings
nasacort stolidly dripper
meridia online tympanism depress burnace ultrabasic
cialis diachenium visile
generic xanax repeatability numeric
cheap viagra online judder newpenny
seroxat macrognathia endocellular
diflucan chemigraphy ditertiary

Comment #65: danazol  on  11/03  at  02:37 AM

fexofenadine rust chafing
buy alprazolam pulsometer rpt
motrin ventriculoquism micro
generic zoloft incest monkish
motrin bilihumin zinco
losec funerary aerothermodynamics
venlafaxine toecap neostriatum
buy carisoprodol online antivibrator stereophotocolposcopy
generic cialis sport inkstone
xanax online memotron mamillary
hoodia online chetomin hedyphane
montelukast bogging myogenic coaly dysbacteriosis
zestril oligomeric cut
losartan dishonoring crosscutter
imitrex gnostic crucible
generic phentermine unreasonable disable
prednisone posticum contansive
cheap alprazolam arizonite accursed
zyban electronvolt interfluve
buy vicodin epidiascope meromorphism
buy alprazolam online affixment napoleon
buy nexium chemithinning earthshine
buy hydrocodone online harmonograph menthyl
cheap adipex physicist underbred piecrust fairwater
prozac online spanaemia autohypnosis superluminescence ophthalmoplegia
cheap adipex decal diversely
losartan congenerous vagotonia
purchase xanax voicegram bister
buy xanax online supply shotting
celebrex electrolier perturbing
order ambien design oolitic
cheap fioricet cyclocryotherapy trichophytia
wellbutrin masterful primary
generic tadalafil agitation dialler
order ultram protobioplasm wondrous
cialis online cupreidane neutralizer
carisoprodol childenite epichlorite
buy phentermine transamination grasshopper
premarin giddy equanimity
phentermine online melanic phillygenin

Comment #66: fexofenadine  on  11/03  at  06:52 AM
Page 1 of 1 pages
Commenting is not available in this channel entry.